Impact here; Atlanta running out of gas.

[Mully]

Ever wished you'd kept your mouth shut? :nod: I'd never thought about the difference in fuel consumed US v UK, but that is very surprising! The price difference is more understandable now, but I still think our government are greedy. Thanks for opening my eyes a little.

No harm done. :)

 

[Tony Eeds]

Although a little dated, this chart kinda sorta shows why prices are what they are relative to the USA vs. the UK. As of 2002, the USA used nearly twenty times the amount of gasoline that the UK did.

Dang, we could save a pile of gas if we cut off the tap to California. :rotfl: They seem to think they are their own country anyway judging by the way they portray themselves in the list. Kind of presumptuous, if you ask me.


brit yz125:

john3_16 only barely scratched the depth of the distance issue. I live in Dallas/Fort Worth which is approximately 200 miles (322 km) west of the border with Louisiana and Arkansas. DFW is over 650 miles (1,048 km) from El Paso, which, on the western tip of Texas, is in another time zone. I routinely drive 1000 miles (1,612 km) a week when I am on the road because of work. I have owned my new truck for 6 months mid this month and it has approximately 22,000 miles (35,483 km) on the odometer as I write this. Additionally, liters/pounds vs. gallons/dollars make the issue hard to comprehend from either side when viewing the other side of the issue.

For better or worse, America developed during a period of mobility fueled by cheap gasoline and the sprawl is something that cannot be changed by wishing the problem away. England developed during a period of horsepower and distance that was significantly smaller in both size and scale. Many parts of New England mirror that period of development as well.

I recently stayed on a ranch in West Texas that is larger than the states of Connecticut and Rhode Island combined. It is 23 miles from the gate to the ranch headquarters. The ranch is 9 1/2 hours or about 650 miles west of my house and still well within the borders of Texas.

 

[kelsorat]

There is no tap to cut-off in CA. Because of fuel mfg restrictions, the bulk of our fuel, is refined in-state.

 

[Vic]

producers/commodity traders will gamble that consumers/economy will have adjusted to the change allowing them raise the bar with respect to what the "normal" oil prices should be.

Despite what appears to be the prevailing conventional "wisdom", it just doesn't work that way.

 

[trakkerman]

Despite what appears to be the prevailing conventional "wisdom", it just doesn't work that way.

I hope you are right, but with the obvious price gouging and profiteering going on in my area, I would have to bet that there is a market "correction" occuring that is not in my favor.

You can scream "Economics 101 - Supply/Demand & mood of world markets" all you want. I'm not buying it. If someone is willing (or has no choice) to pay 40% more today than they did yesterday, not too many corporations are going to give it all back. Call me simple and ignorant, but I see it happen everyday.

 

[mxer842]

Think you've got expensive fuel? In the UK, 'premium gas', or unleaded petrol as we call it, now costs £5/gall, thats about $8 or $9 i think?

Wil you ever pay for a doctors visit?perscription drugs?trip to the ER?

Think not. Your overtaxed gas is going a long way in providing healthcare.

 

[Vic]

If someone is willing (or has no choice) to pay 40% more today than they did yesterday

That is the market at work. No, I don't think the oil corporations are willing to share their profits with you. When they lose money, I don't think you will be willing to share their losses.

Call me simple and ignorant

You are simple and ignorant. :)

 

[sodflyer]

on another note on what I saw yesterday at the pump......I had been riding my old 87 FZ700 to work as it's a 60 mile round trip and after seeing that it cost me 43.00 LAST weekend to fill up my 93 Toyota pickup I said screw it! Im riding rain or shine.... now mind you I don't get awesome gas milage out of the bike...somewhere around 220 a tank without reserve if I keep out of the throttle I know I am saving. So filling up the bike yesterday morning that cost me 15.00 for 5 gallons I see three pickups with anywhere from 5-10 5 gallon gas cans in there and they were filling those up as well.... now is it just me or is this most of the reason why the prices are going up? people creating a higher than normal demand for fuel so this gives them the reason to jack up the price...

 

[brit yz125]

Wil you ever pay for perscription drugs?

Yes, we do pay for prescription drugs :nener:

 

[Senior KX Rider]

Gas is down to 2.99 here today. was as high as 3.29 :)

 

[Vic]

You can get a pretty good idea of the day to day price movement at the pump by watching the futures prices. Just add on the various taxes applicable to your state, plus about ten cents and you can get a good idea what it should be selling for at the pump.


http://charts3.barchart.com/chart.a...&vol=Y&evnt=adv&grid=Y&code=BSTK&org=stk&fix=

 

[MikeT]

Think you've got expensive fuel? In the UK, 'premium gas', or unleaded petrol as we call it, now costs £5/gall, thats about $8 or $9 i think?

You know, I am so sick and tired of hearing that. I can see why people here don't understand it but when people who live over there say it, it shows they don't even know how they are being taxed. Here is the simple way to understand it.

OVER THERE (UK).

Make a paycheck-------> Buy gas and pay for your health insurance.

Example

Earned wages.............................1000 pounds
minus gas for the week.............- 600 pounds
What you have left....................=400 pounds

OVER HERE (USA)

Make paycheck MINUS $$$$$ for health insurance ------ Buy gas with what is left.

Example

Earned wages..............................1000 dollars
minus INSURANCE.......................- 400 dollars
minus gas for the week................-200 dollars
What you have left......................=400 dollars

I'm didn't do any real conversions here from dollars to pounds but what it shows is just where our money and their money goes. I think we are probably in the same boat, it is just a matter of when they take it. You can pay me now, or you can pay me later. Either way, your still going to pay me.

 

[mxer842]

Yes, we do pay for prescription drugs :nener:

I must be misinformed, do you only pay for perscriptions if you use non-generic meds or is it all around?

 

[MikeT]

Yes, we do pay for prescription drugs :nener:

Well, in addition to paying for healthcare out of our earned wages that gets taken out before we even see our check, we also pay for perscription drugs also.

I'm telling you, it is probably even here and over there. It is all about when the bucks are taken. Ours get taken out of our check, yours get taken out at the pump.

 

[brit yz125]

Okay, no need for everyone to have a go! ;)
I was simply making an observation based on fact- brits pay more for their fuel than you do in the US, however i didn't take into account the reasons behind it. Didn't mean to annoy anyone :) and now I understand why we do pay more.
Anybody between the age of 25 and 65 pays for their prescriptions, but there are also other deciding factors such as disability etc., not very clued up on this though! I just know I pay for my prescriptions at the chemist. If you start breaking it down and seeing what you do actually pay the govt. in taxes, regardless of how they are paid, then it really does wind me up :bang:

 

[High Lord Gomer]

I talked with a friend who owns a gas station and he said that his price for gas was the same on Thursday and Friday as it was on Wednesday before the panic started. So he was still paying 2.80 for regular and selling it at less than $3.00. Credit card fees cost him most of that 20 cent margin.

He never raised his price and ran out Wednesday night. Since he couldn't get any more until Friday, he lost almost 2 full days of inside sales. He doesn't make anything on the gas, it just brings people in to buy beer, cigarettes, and condoms.

Knowing that he doesn't make anything on gas, I wouldn't mind if he was able to raise his price a little to finally make something off it. He said he'd rather sleep well at night knowing that he isn't one of the ones people are complaining about when they talk about gas station owners exploiting the public.

 

[XRpredator]

. . . gas station owners exploiting the public.

That's what gets me. The gas in the ground there at the station didn't all the sudden cost the station more money. The next tanker probably will, but they will recoup that when they raise the price then. I guess maybe if they look at "we're trying to get ahead of the curve to afford the next tanker" I could see it, but it's all BS in my eyes.

I guess we get all our fuel here in North Idaho from the Gulf Coast . . . :coocoo:

 

[MikeT]

So he was still paying 2.80 for regular and selling it at less than $3.00. Credit card fees cost him most of that 20 cent margin.
.

You know, that really is sad. I didn't think they paid that much (or that the margin was that small) for gas at the stations. It seems our disgust at the prices needs to be directed at the gas companies and at the countries selling the oil at 65+ dollars a barrel.

 

[truespode]

I guess maybe if they look at "we're trying to get ahead of the curve to afford the next tanker" I could see it, but it's all BS in my eyes.

It's more about raising the price so there is enough money to support the business when they run out of gas and cannot make money for a few days.

I have no problem with reasonable price increases in a situation like this.

What "McMinaGrath" did shows a lot about his integrity and his ability to run a business that can survive some hard times. However, not all business' can withstand a few days of no cash flow.

Ivan

 

[High Lord Gomer]

Most gas stations get gas once a day, sometimes more. That helps explain why their price can change daily, since their cost can change daily.

His big beef is with places like Walmart that sell below cost to drive out competition in smaller towns so they can be the only game in town.

 

[XRpredator]

Most gas stations get gas once a day, sometimes more. That helps explain why their price can change daily, since their cost can change daily.

Maybe there, but not in my Podunkville

 

[sparkysakitas]

dont forget that the fed gov and states charge on the average of 30-50cents a gallon tax on gas they could ease up on the taxes a bit to help with skyrocketing prices

 

[mark_england]

The UK is small and everything is close compared to the U.S.....We have states that dwarf the size of the UK...This is the factor that EUropeans forget when they compare their costs...Most of the high price for the UK is tax related as well.


Many people here drive 50 miles to get to work and 50 miles to get back home...that's 500 to 600 miles a week...And alot of those folks are driving cars that get 10 miles to the gallon...We are much more spread out than Europe, so $3 per gallon gets VERY expensive here real quick..

rubbish,,

yes the uk is smaller then the usa, but so what,, the comparison isnt really applicable,, many people in the uk drive 50+ miles each way to work aswell.
The real comapirison should be how many miles a year a person drives.
i personally avarage around 36000 miles a year.

fuel here cost is equal to $7:21 for for a US gallon
on top of that car insurance here is a joke,, for me at 35 in a 225bhp 1.8litre seat cupra R it costs $2,391.09 a year to insure it.
so for me fuel costs alone per year are equal to $8652

in one of your 10mpg vehicals at $3 per gallon your fuel costs are $10800

If you drove my car [which is probably as fast if not faster then your vehical] then your fuel costs for the year would be reduced to $3600

or a diesel audi a4 $2160

so maybe you need to factor into this the american motor industry,, blatent facination with raw v8 horsepower and disregard for MPG.
the speed limit over there is 55mph?

10mpg ? i think if you drive sucha gas gussler then you give up your right to moan about the cost of fuel.
There's only so much oil reserves left and it makes a lot of enviromentle sense as well as financial sense to move towards more frugal vehicals

the vehicals youve used as an example use 3 times the amount of fuel then mine,, and your fuel costs a lot less then half.

no offence but i hope the cost of fuel in America continues to rise,, maybe then your motor industry will take a closer look at how it does things..

either that or your govenment will look to invade and occupy another oil producung country :|

 

[mark_england]

Wil you ever pay for a doctors visit?perscription drugs?trip to the ER?

Think not. Your overtaxed gas is going a long way in providing healthcare.

well we do pay prescription charges,, and many of us pay for private healthcare insurance,, rather then trust the conventional national healthcare.

i think the tax on our fuel is currently around 80% to 90%

But if our over taxed fuel goes towards the healthservice

why do we have an additional healthcare tax [above and beyond the 40% income tax] called "national insurance" ?

i think the UK is very much over taxed

 

[mark_england]

You know, I am so sick and tired of hearing that. I can see why people here don't understand it but when people who live over there say it, it shows they don't even know how they are being taxed. Here is the simple way to understand it.

OVER THERE (UK).

Make a paycheck-------> Buy gas and pay for your health insurance.

Example

Earned wages.............................1000 pounds
minus gas for the week.............- 600 pounds
What you have left....................=400 pounds

OVER HERE (USA)

Make paycheck MINUS $$$$$ for health insurance ------ Buy gas with what is left.

Example

Earned wages..............................1000 dollars
minus INSURANCE.......................- 400 dollars
minus gas for the week................-200 dollars
What you have left......................=400 dollars

I'm didn't do any real conversions here from dollars to pounds but what it shows is just where our money and their money goes. I think we are probably in the same boat, it is just a matter of when they take it. You can pay me now, or you can pay me later. Either way, your still going to pay me.

actually its not like that..

its more like...


Earned wages.............................1000 pounds
Minus compulsary national health care insurance,,,,,,- 200 pounds
Minus healthcare insurance,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,-100 pounds
minus gas for the month .............- 600 pounds